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Hey, Sword Sister
The waters around the Land of Wano were being disturbed by the presence of a jade-colored equine with a horn, running across the sea around the several islands on its bare legs. The speed at which it moved and its consistent pace and movement allowed it to do so, with the side-effect of leaving behind waves of varying sizes, and degrees of danger to surrounding ships and harbors unfortunate enough to be near the one-horned horse. And yet, more interestingly, was the woman riding on the back of the fanged steed, clutching onto its silver mane, her head lowered to the level of her steed, unfazed by the wind pressure. From the islands, it looked like a single drill-like stream of water rushing across the sea. Until it crashed into a nearby harbor, bringing about a large wave of waters reaching into the nearest buildings, drenching the surrounding in water. The woman, clad in an ornate red and blue attire and with distinct silver hair, got down from the horse, petting it "Alright, Jin. Stay put until I come back." She instructed her steed, Jin. In response, Jin stepped away, each step it took leaving a dent in the ground, either from its weight or strength, going near the waters to lean its head down and drink from the sea directly. A young woman with black hair, surrounded by dozens of wooden training totems, stood still with her sword entering her sheath. As the blade and sheath clicked, the totems were all perfectly cut in half, leaving the top halves to fall on the ground and create a wave of snow rising upwards. Immediately afterwards, the woman heard the sound of waves rapidly approaching the nearby vicinity. Alert of the danger, she silently made her way to confront the waves while maintaining a composed face. Her stance tightened, with her sword comfortably at her hips, in its sheath. The gigantic wave approached, but the swordswoman only looked forward. She took a step forward with her right leg, planting it in the ground. And in the next moment, her sword had escaped from its sheath. With her right arm in the air, she brought it down with tremendous force. She created a pure white, crescent shockwave that rippled the air itself, splitting the wave apart and forcing it to prematurely crash, removing all the impact it would have on the citizens. "...Who dares disturb the peace of this town?" The young woman spoke with a nobility in her tone. "To attack the home of the Gozen Clan...they have not heard of my blade." The woman sheathed her blade once more and walked towards the source of the disruption. This woman was Gozen Shizuka, the Princess of the Gozen Clan, and the guardian of the Genpei District of Wano. To disrupt her territory was tantamount to suicide. "Siiiiiiis~!" The silver-haired woman leaped towards Shizuka, a wide smile on her face with her arms spread apart, preparing for a traditional welcoming method known as a hug "Give big sis Tomoe a hug~" The woman, Gozen Tomoe, yelled out loud. "..." Shizuka looked upon the silver-haired woman and was confused for a moment. However, the moment she heard that word and her voice, everything had made sense. As opposed to receive this display of affection, Shizuka seamlessly shifted to her left, narrowly avoiding being caught by the embrace as the jumping woman would have fallen onto the snow. "What...are you doing back here, Tomoe-nee?" Shizuka asked Tomoe, her face bearing visible confusion, and even anger, at her appearance. Things were not meant to be like this. Not at all. "Eh~ Why did you dodge my love hug, lil' Shizu?" Tomoe said, wiggling her body in displeasure at Shizuka's rejection "Don't you love me anymore?" She almost seemed to try and woo her sister with an unrealistically cutesy voice and widened eyes, projecting innocence to trigger some kind of maternal instinct within Shizuka. "You ran away when I wanted to hug you and bring you back all those years ago, did you not?" Shizuka retorted, anger welling in her fists. "I am simply returning the favor." Shizuka took a deep breath, attempting to keep true to her teachings and remain calm. "Now, answer me, Tomoe-nee. What brings you to this place? The Yonko, Black Widow...No, you do not mean to say you are allied with her?" "Oh, I came to visit." Tomoe casually replied "I finally got strong, you see! So I said, hey! Let's finally go home and see my family, and put them in their place!" She said with an excited tone "Did you see Jin? Jin! Get over here, meet my sister." Tomeo called out to her steed, who ignored her in favor of drinking directly from the sea, unfazed by the salty sea water "He's a bit stubborn, but I love him.". "You finally got strong?" Shizuka reiterated, noticeably angry. "You returned because you were strong? What is strength going to do? Is it going to repair our family's horrendous state among the public? Will it bring back the time I lost as a child having to catch up to your footsteps as Princess?!" Shizuka's composure broke hearing her sister's casual response to her question. It was unforgivable that this...traitor could come and go as she desired. "...If you are so strong, then prove it." Shizuka's anger turned inwards, instead radiating a murderous intent that almost felt tangible from a close distance. "I have attained training in the ways of the Samurai as well. Prove to me that your defection was worth the price. If you prove incompetent...I will take your place among the Black Widow Pirates!" "Oh-kay~!" Tomoe giddily agreed, her smile and optimism downright beaming. She bent her back forward, grabbing onto her one of her four swords, the sheathed one on the upper left waist "Ittoryu." Her tone changed, a serious, battle-ready tone in stark contrast to her smiling face. Tomoe unsheathed her sword, one with a distinct, dark flame-like pattern across the silver blade, a sword she fought a bandit gang for, but didn't return the sword to its rightful owners, due to sensing the strength and importance of the blade. Oddly, however, Tomoe did not swing the blade, rather, she stabbed it into the ground, before changing her grip to a backwards one "This one I learned from traversing a dangerous mountain. Rather than going through the dangers of its environment and beasts..." She pushed the sword forward, singing in an upwards position, a clean slash from the point the blade began at extended forward, and so did the size of the air pressure getting carried by the force of its swing, growing further and further, separating the waters of the sea near them in a straight line. "I opted to going through a mountain with a path of my own.". Without delay, Shizuka lowered her body, pushed out her left leg backwards, and gripped her sword tightly when she noticed her sister keeping the sword on the ground. Her eyes tracked every move with caution, and the moment that slash occurred, she reacted. As opposed to a powerful slash being erected by the force of her movement, Shizuka opted to pull her sheath back and swing her sword horizontally in an almost "flicking" motion, with such speed that it created, what appeared to be, a pure white line of air pressure that would shoot forward with the speed of a bullet. The two forces clashed, creating an eruption of force between the sisters that broke the ice — literally — between them, revealing the rocky terrain beneath. "I learned this from repeatedly unsheathing and sheathing my blade under the strict guidance of an instructor." Shizuka retorted, aggression apparent in her black eyes. Pulling her left leg closer to herself, Shizuka switched her stance. Her blade's hilt was parallel to her abdomen, and the blade itself faced her sister. She held the sword with a medium grip using both hands. It was the perfect example of studious, disciplined swordsmanship: the stance known as . "And this...was learned through years of endlessly repeating the same strike until it was ingrained into every aspect of my body. Feel the weight of !" Shizuka's entire body weight was pushed forward, supporting the strength of her arms as she brought her sword upwards and then swung downwards with terrifying force. Everything surrounding her, in that very instant, had been cut away. The air, sound, and any obstacles were nothing in the face of Shizuka's perfect blade, as a crescent arc of air pressure sought to slice her opponent directly in half. Tomoe's eyes brimmed with excitement, but she quickly reacted towards her sister's counter, hunching over, taking a step back, before standing upright, gripping onto her sword tightly. She extended her left arm forward, as if to "aim" with it, while cocking her right arm back, with her blade pointing forward "Did you practice how to deal with those beyond your blade's reach as well?" She clutched her left hand into a fist, thrusting her right arm forth, and sword, turning the blade black with Busoshoku Haki. The blades pushed through the air, and pushed the air itself, as her Tomoe's arm lunged forth at blinding speed, the result being a straightforward blast of air pressure, not unlike the Rankyaku technique of the famed Rokushiki. It almost looked like an extension of Tomoe's sword, a blade of air pressure extending forward. Forward, in fact, that it missed Shizuka's attack by mere inches, continuing forward towards Shizuka herself, while Shizuka's attack struck Tomoe, only avoiding being sliced up with the use of her Busoshoku Haki, although her clothes weren't as fortunate. Shizuka saw that her sister had made use of Busoshoku Haki, and she responded in kind. It was a prerequisite to any Samurai's training that they be able to materialize their willpower freely. Her sword and skin turned black, before she switched stances once more. She raised her arms and shifted her blade to her right, before making her sword face downward. She darted forward and stepped ever-so-slightly to the left, causing Tomoe's attack to clash directly with Shizuka's outstretched blade. The incoming sound felt as if two blades violently clashed — a testament to the prowess of the swordswomen. Although she tried to completely avoid damage, her sleeves would ultimately rip from the impact, but she was able to avoid notable injury. The clash came to a close, and suddenly in the next step, Shizuka's figure almost disappeared. There was no sound, no impact, merely movement. Within the next instant, Shizuka had closed the gap between herself and her sister, appearing right before her. "There is no opponent that can stay outside the reach of my blade," Shizuka spoke, flipping her sword's direction so it faced upwards diagonally, "For this is why I am called the Immeasurable Sword!" Shizuka slashed downwards with incredible speed, intending on cutting through her sister's armor and winning the battle here. Tomoe stretched out her arm, turning it pitch black with her Haki, clashing an open palm with Shizuka's blade, the ensuing clash of a haki-imbued hand with a haki-imbued blade creating a powerful shockwave, blowing away all objects, and some pedestrians. Nearby ships docked nearly flipped over by the strong winds. Tomoe's fingers enclosed on the blade, grabbing it and pulling the sword down, forcefully making Shizuka miss. Blood dripped from her hand, as even her Haki wasn't all-powerful, her sister succeeding in breaking through the initial layers. "I don't mind you being close to me." Tomoe said, grabbing her sword in a reverse grip, stabbing the ground with such force that the earth rose upwards like a wave, as half of the blade was sunk within the earth "The principle of iaido is instant unsheathing and re-sheathing of your blade." The rest of the blade stabbed through the earth, until only the hilt remained seen, with Tomoe bending her knees to reach it "I just need the proper set up." She released the hilt, and Shizuka's blade, gripping the sword pierced into the earth on her right with her left hand as she bent downwards further to reach it. Tomoe slashed her sword forward, in a motion not dissimilar to a swordsman employing the well-known technique of iaido, yet as she did, the ground itself rose, the slash of air pressure moving forward, but the ground rising in spikes following suit, as if the power of Tomoe's slash stayed within the ground, and forced it to move along with it. "..." Shizuka was astonished as her sword was pushed aside, but even more than that, she observed the next movement of her sister and, instinctively, leaped backwards several meters. She did not know how her sister employed swordsmanship, but she could feel the earth shaking. And she was not wrong. The quake that followed made the swordswoman more alert, but that was not the true threat. Tomoe's "Iaidō" used the very earth itself as a medium!? It was a fact that astonished her, but she could not allow any delays. If her sister would use the earth to guide her blade, then Shizuka would simply rely on her training; her training never failed her. She kept her hands and sword pointing downward in front of her body, while observing the upturning earth moving towards her. She moved her sword in a perfect circle in front of her body, with the air itself wrapping around her blade due to her minute rotations throughout the maneuver. The air collected to a single point as she raised her blade towards her left rib, with the air following through and gathering at the tip of the sword. "Haaah!" She thrust the blade with such speed that the air followed the sword's path, creating an almost serpentine tornado of air. It sped through the upturned earth like a bullet, vaporizing the spikes that came in its path with perfect spherical vacuums, before reaching the last wall that blocked it from devouring Tomoe. The earth and air collided and dissipated each other's momentum, leaving the environment upturned with both combatants uninjured once more. "Let us stop with such extravagant displays, Tomoe-nee." Shizuka requested, loosening her stance, but maintaining an obvious guard by shifting her body to only expose her right side. "True swordsmanship lies in precise exchanges of skill, and this town does not require any more destruction." Tomoe flashed a near-smug grin on her face "Do you want us to fight elsewhere?" Tomoe said, sheathing her sword as she walked towards her sister "This place still has value to me as well, you know. I don't want it destroyed. Lead the way, and I'll follow." Despite holding no weapon or having no posture to herself, the aura around Tomoe still felt ready for battle, the air almost flickering with her almost killer-like intent. "Let us go to a familiar place." Shizuka responded, sheathing her own sword and walking in front of Tomoe, trusting that her sister was at least honorable enough to not stab her in the back. The pair passed through a forested area, before arriving at a wide open plain, with naught but a single, grand tree in the center of it, creating a canopy that lightly shaded the whole area. "I assume you remember this place, don't you?" Shizuka asked, turning to face her sister. She recalled memories of herself crying underneath this tree and Tomoe consoling her. Or other times where she watched Tomoe sneak in sword practice without anybody knowing, while Shizuka attempted to copy those moves. "It's a place with a lot of memories attached. Fitting for our reunion." "..." Tomoe stared at the tree, her expression vacant but odd, a complete contrast from the sickeningly upbeat swordsman she was until now. Her hand moved across the tree's sturdy base, moving away vines, showing markings of slashes left behind by Tomoe's training. In all these years, almost nothing has changed "I was a weak, reckless little child." She smiled lightly, turning her back towards the tree "And how much have I improved since then I wonder?" Without warning or hesitation, Tomoe unsheathed her blade, slashing at the tree, before sheating it instantly after. The speed at which she moved was simply inhumane, the precise movement and control leaving only afterimages, and before Shizuka could tell, it was over, a giant slash appeared on the tree, digging into the ground. "Not a bad progress, wouldn't you say?" The tree remained standing sturdy, despite the large gash, as if it was perfectly fine still. "It is a good thing we are no longer children, I suppose." Shizuka said, somewhat surprised by the speed of Tomoe's slash, though concealing her emotions. She walked away from the tree, towards the center of the grassland they stood upon. Shizuka drew her blade slowly and focused her gaze on Tomoe. "No more large-scale attacks. No more Haki. We will fight purely with our strength, until one of us collapses." "Ah, how I missed those simpler times." Tomoe said, walking infront of Shizuka, a fair distance between the two sisters "I do love my women to be strong in spirit and body." She said, before suddenly lunging forward, striking the earth with her foot and in a single leap, begone to close the distance between her and Shizuka. An aerial assault, yet Tomoe's hands hovered between all four blades, two on each side, with a single hand for each. "Iaido..." Tomoe spoke, as her fingers clenched, preparing to grip her blades "Shijū." The wind moved with Tomoe's body as she did, yet in a moment of blinding speed on her part, Tomoe's arms simply vanished for a split second, and all four swords were unsheathed, gone as well. The wind intensified, almost like a typhoon around her body, as Tomoe prepared to utilize her most refined technique against her sister, the four-sword Iaido, using her inhumane abilities to its fullest, unsheathing and re-sheathing all four swords after slashing them at once against a single target. What would ensue would not only be a simple slash of pressurized air, but an entire torrent of wind blades would follow, a thousand smaller, but sharp blades rotating towards a single target. Shizuka prepared herself the moment Tomoe leaped. However, in the instant she heard her say Iaidō, she adjusted her stance. Unlike before, Shizuka had lost all the tension in her body. The only place that strength was directed to were her arms, which had been placed in front of her, with her sword held with both hands. "Jippo Muryo!" It was a move that bordered on physical impossibility, as her blade moved to parry all the slashes Tomoe released simultaneously. It was a difficult, nigh-impossible task that caused Shizuka to be injured across her shoulders with moderate wounds. However, the primary damage was avoided. What was to come the difficult task. The resulting typhoon of blades would snip away at her clothes and skin, but Shizuka refused to give up. Her arms were still the only place in her body that held any modicum of strength. With a mighty push, she slashed downward, parting the very air that dared to harm her. "I will not lose...that easily!" A burst of air followed from Shizuka's cry, energizing her body once again. Shizuka took the initiative, swinging her blade above her head as Tomoe descended towards her position in an attempt to behead her in the opening she exposed following that Iaidō maneuver. While she knew this was not nearly enough, it was merely the first step of a larger attack. Tomoe's legs have been bent the entire time, and when she came closer towards Shizuka following her attack, sheathing her swords back in, and going head first into Shizuka's attack, she retracted her legs, seemingly kicking the air with such force that it was like an air cannon, leaving imprints on the ground beneath her, using it just barely get some control over herself. It was no Geppo, but it was enough to have Shizuka's sword dig into her left shoulder rather than through her neck. "No Haki. I am a woman of my word." Tomoe said, moving her left arm despite the profuse bleeding, unsheathing two swords, releasing them from her grip, before going to unsheathe her remaining two, pushing away Shizuka's sword with the second set. "This here...is what no one in Wano will ever reach." Tomoe moved towards her swords, and catching both before either one hit the ground. One of the swords was held inbetween her fingers alongside another sword, whilst she caught the other one with her left foot, kicking forward, taking off her sandle in the process, allowing her to grip the handle with her toes, leaping backwards to gain greater distance between her and Shizuka "Do you know what happens when you break your body repeatedly in order to achieve your maximum potential, Shizuka!" Tomoe grinned. She stood on one leg, the sword gripped between her toes pointing downwards, raising her leg so it wouldn't touch the ground. "Self-Taught Fighting Style; Yontoryuu, Inhumane." Tomoe said, before quickly bending her right leg, and turning her left leg to behind her, leaning forward, almost as if tilting and falling "I've been told the Marines call this technique Soru, I prefer Shukuchi." In an instant, Tomoe seemed to have vanished when she kicked the earth, lunging herself forward, before reappearing again, right where the wind was blowing. Even with only one leg, Tomoe maintained her speed and balance, using her body weight to continue moving forward. If one could track the wind, they could track her, even as she became temporarily "invisible" in her bouts of speed. "Self-Taught Yontoryuu Technique!" Tomoe said, gripping all her swords tightly "This is a gift for Wano, and for you." She said, as the distance between the two began to close, sharp gusts of wind blowing away at the flora around them "Tenpenchii!" A four-bladed strike was the simpler explanation for Tomoe's next attack, but the idea behind the technique was unpredictability, like a true calamity. The initial attack is a powerful blow with all four blades at once, kicking with her sword, and slashing with her arms, using the momentum she gained and her body weight to create a powerful impact. But the following would only be an ever-changing "stance" to adapt and react to her enemy's next move, if they survive. In hindsight, the technique is more than just four slashes. It's an infinite number of sword strikes, from four points each time, stopping only until one of the two sides gives in. Shizuka stood in awe for a brief moment as her sword was swung away. "Four swords...simultaneously!?" As Tomoe disappeared, Shizuka shivered. What was she to do!? Tomoe appeared before her with all four swords ready to strike, and Shizuka tried to block the onslaught, but to no avail. Her sword was pushed downwards, leading the accumulated air pressure to injure her abdomen, causing her to violently gag. All looked grim for the Gozen Clan Princess, but then she remembered one scene. ---- Three years ago, Kozuki Dojo. "W-what do I do, sensei!?" A younger Shizuka pleaded, facing a beast with countless spear-like apparitions extending from its body repeatedly clashing into her, with Shizuka only barely managing to push it away. "Rely on your training, Shizuka. Abandon all technique, all form. Give into your instinct, and remember that one slash you have performed since you have walked this path. You will be lead to victory." A womanly voice told her, and Shizuka obliged. Shizuka abandoned all hesitation, took a single, deep breath, and allowed her body to move without conscious thought. Her movements had become fluid, seamless, and powerful. She repeated the same slash, endlessly clashing with the beast until it finally submitted to her blade. "Remember, Shizuka. You will never face an opponent your training cannot fight against. Visualize the origin, and simply...slash." ---- "I...will...not lose..!" As Tomoe's swords were to approach her once again, Shizuka closed her eyes. She felt the movement of the air, her own body, and the sound of swords gliding through the air. What happened next would surprise anybody. In a simple downward slash, Shizuka mustered enough strength to repel Tomoe's left side, with two of the blades being pushed away, though the other two managed to slash non-vital areas. The injury did not bother Shizuka, but rather, she used the momentum from her initial slash to flow into her next movement. Her sword traveled in all directions, ignorant of injury, uncaring for their path. One at a time, she would parry the incoming slashes. Even if she missed some, it was okay. What mattered was resistance, until her body could sense an opening. All Shizuka and her sword knew was to move forward. With every slash they made, she took another step, closing the distance further. However, Shizuka's body was running out of oxygen. Eventually, she would need to breathe. Her body understood this, and decided to place all of its strength into one final strike to end this sequence. The following blade that would come to reach her was on Tomoe's left arm. Defying gravity itself, Shizuka pushed her blade upwards to the left with such strength and speed that the sword had been cut in half! The Yontoryu had ended, and Shizuka had survived. Her eyes opened, and immediately her pain was apparent. She grit her teeth as blood trailed down her arms, legs and torso. The grass beneath her turned blood-red, but she refused to show weakness. "I can't...I can't...I won't let her know...I was the one that was alone! I was the one who took all of those burdens! She knows nothing! She deserves to be punished! I am strong...AND I WILL PROVE IT!" Her thoughts fueled her resolve, as she tightened her stance yet again. "What was that...?" Shizuka began to slowly say, panting, "Nobody in Wano will reach it...? Well...would you look at that..." Shizuka continued to pant, but a grin stretched across her face. "I reached it...and I broke it." Tomoe's face showed a slight expression of shock and a frown, but quickly changed to excitement and joy. Her sword had shattered. It didn't matter, though, that sword was a low-grade, nameless tripe that had no value to her. She regained balance, standing sturdy like a powerful pillar before Shizuka. She stabbed the sword held in her toes into the ground, stabbing the one in her left hand next to it as well. She simply held that single sword, pointing it towards Shizuka, with one hand behind her back, clenched into a fist. Her arm bent slightly, the sword's tip pointing upwards rather than directly at Shizuka. The blade was exposed to sunlight, and the light reflected off of it, but the the light seemed to reflect through the blade, almost magnifying it, despite not being transparent, or even thin. "Father was stingy with his toys. This one especially." Tomoe bent her knees lightly, turning her body 180 degrees to the left, her right shoulder facing Shizuka, her right leg forward, and her sword grip tightened "I regret not being there to see his reaction after he found Muramasa's chambers empty.".